Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s unexpected silence on the latest agreement has stirred political and diplomatic debate in Israel. On Thursday, commentator Amit Segal examined why the man who had previously fought every diplomatic deal so forcefully is now avoiding any public confrontation.
Segal said there are three possible explanations for Netanyahu’s restraint. The least likely, in his view, is that Netanyahu believes the current deal is less harmful than it appears publicly, so he sees no need for an immediate attack.
The second explanation is tactical. Segal argued that Netanyahu understands he still has about two and a half years to work with President Donald Trump, making a direct public clash with him now an unnecessary political and diplomatic risk that Netanyahu wants to avoid in order to preserve working relations.
The most significant reason, Segal said, is Lebanon. He said Netanyahu is currently focused almost entirely on the Lebanese track, and that in the many talks between Trump and Netanyahu over the past weeks, especially the last week, roughly 80% to 90% of the time was spent not on Iran, which he described as effectively a done deal, but on Lebanon. According to Segal, Netanyahu’s overriding interest is to ensure that the Lebanese issue remains under control and aligned with Israel’s security interests.
